Saint Helena and the True Cross
A long time ago, in the 4th century, there lived a kind woman named Helena. She was the mother of Constantine the Great, the first Christian emperor of Rome. Helena loved Jesus very much and wanted to help others love Him too.
One day, Helena decided to go on a long trip, called a pilgrimage, to Jerusalem. This was the place where Jesus lived, died on the cross, and rose from the dead. Helena wanted to find the holy places where these things happened and make them special for people to visit and pray.
When she got to Jerusalem, she heard about a hill called Calvary, where Jesus had been crucified. But on that spot, many years ago, people had built a temple for false gods. Helena asked her workers to take the temple down. As they cleared the land, they found three old wooden crosses buried in the ground.
But which cross was the one Jesus had died on—the True Cross?
The story says a sick woman came to the site. When she touched one of the crosses, she was healed! Helena knew this must be the cross of Jesus.
Helena wanted to honor Jesus by building beautiful churches. She built the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, where Jesus died and was buried, and the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, where Jesus was born. Now people could come to these churches to pray and feel close to Jesus.
Helena also took pieces of the True Cross and other holy things back to Rome. A special church called the Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem was built to keep them safe. She even sent one of the nails from Jesus’ cross to her son, Constantine. It later went to the big church in Milan, called the Milan Cathedral. Because of Saint Helena, Christians everywhere could remember the love of Jesus and visit the holy places she found.
